David Gerald Rapelje

RAPELJE,
David Gerald
(Age 62)

Born February 28, 1948 in Toppenish, WA. After a very short and brave battle with lung cancer, Dave went peacefully to be with his Lord and Savior. Dave is survived by his wife of 40 ½ years, Lyla; parents, Duane and Edna Rapelje; two children, Adam and wife Amy, daughter, Diana and husband Nathan Beach; grandchildren, Ella, Rosie, Hallie, Hazel, and Westin; brothers, Don and wife Susie, Pete and wife Michele, nieces and nephews, Matt, Isaac, Rachel, Jenny, Jonathon, Ashley, Connor, numerous relatives and friends.
Dave grew up on many military bases throughout the U.S. as his adoptive dad proudly served the Air Force. His family lived in California, Florida, Washington, South Carolina, Texas, Colorado, Nevada, and Idaho. Because of the constant transfers, Dave learned how to make friends quickly and be the entertainer. He and his brothers, Don and Pete, were very competitive with their fishing skills. Dave learned quickly where the best spots were for fishing and what bait to use. He thrived in the outdoors and in the mountains where he became a proficient fisherman and hunter. Graduating from Widefield H. S. in Colorado Springs, CO, he joined the U.S. Navy at 18 and was assigned to the U.S.S. Princeton, LPH 5, during the Vietnam War. He attained the rank of E5 in record speed. Dave, his two brothers and Dad served in the Navy, Air Force, Army, and Marines at the same time. Dave was a talented artist whose logo was chosen for the Apollo 10. In 1968, he met his wife, Lyla and married on June 27, 1970. Dave attended colleges in Santa Monica and Sacramento, CA. He started his working career as a salesman and continued in sales because of his wit and gift of gab. He became partners in the sporting goods store, Wild Sports, in Sacramento. In 1983, the Lord found Dave and encouraged him to move his family to Spokane, WA. He then purchased a wholesale bait business, naming it "Mr. Bait", from Greg McCowan who later became his best friend and hunting buddy. Buying Mr. Bait allowed Dave to develop strong relationships with family and friends. Because of his leadership and people skills, Dave entertained his fishing and hunting buddies constantly. He was actively involved in the Spokane Bird Dog Association and NAHRA. Learning how to train his hunting dogs Teak and Sage was a real challenge but rewarding as he hunted pheasants, ducks, geese, grouse, turkeys, deer, wild boar, and elk. He was a co-owner of a house in Hecela, SD where he went annually to hunt, cook, guide, and entertain his buddies. He was sorely missed this year during the pheasant hunt but was kept up-to-date with the hunting expeditions by phone. Dave was especially proud of his two children, Adam and Diana. Both graduated from Northwest Christian where he supported their pursuits in basketball and cheerleading. One of the proudest moments was when Adam was part of the winning State B Basketball Tournament in 1994. Dave was also proud of his children's diplomas from WSU and their chosen mates Amy and Nate. His five grandbabies will always love their dear PAPA! Dave was the ultimate family man-------both as dad, uncle, and grandpa. He was the family Patriarch who arranged reunions and documented family weddings and events with wonderful videos and pictures put to music.
The family would like to send a special thank you to the ENTIRE staff of Holy Family Hospital who was so supportive and caring. Words of gratitude especially go to Dr. Tommy Le of Group Health and Dr. Tiffany Hanf of Holy Family. A celebration of Dave's life will be held at Ball and Dodd this Friday at 1:30 pm. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ, www.cccigive.org, account #0513323.